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A fund for transforming coastal communities in the UK has opened for a fifth round of applications, says coastal communities minister Jake Berry.

There is £40 million available for councils and organisations to bid for during this round, he announced on a visit to Barrow-in-Furness.

The town has benefited from multiple rounds of coastal communities funding, which has been used to improve business support in the coastal area, from north of Millom across the Furness peninsula to Grange.

Berry said: “Coastal communities up and down the country from Barrow-in-Furness to Brighton have been boosted by this funding, which has spurred inward investment, sustainable growth, new jobs and exciting economic opportunities for local businesses.

“By 2020, we’ll have invested nearly a quarter of a billion pounds in our seaside areas, providing thousands of jobs, training places and opportunities along the Great British Coast.”The Coastal Communities Fund supports the economic transformation of coastal communities in the UK by disbursing money towards creating sustainable economic growth and jobs.

Since 2012, the Coastal Communities Fund has awarded grants to 295 projects across the UK, totalling over £174 million. Projects include:

A pilot-scale internship scheme in Barrow-in-Furness, placing young people in high-tech firms. This led the OGDEN Trust to agree to fund 60 placements between 2018 and 2020.

Cornwall Council received a £1.95 million grant in 2014 to repair and relaunch the grade II listed art deco ‘Jubilee Pool’ in Penzance to create an all-year-round visitor attraction sustaining existing jobs and creating new positions.

Northumberland County Council was awarded £1.8 million in 2014 to improve the economy of seafood town Amble, through infrastructure works to transform the town into a visitor destination promoting seafood, attracting new visitors and creating jobs. The project has provided two new restaurants, improved facilities incorporating a Harbour Village with retail space, and enhanced access along the shore.

Funding for round five will cover the period 2019-20 to 2020-21. Funds will become available from April 2019.More information about the fund can be found on the UK Government website.

Tourists wanting to vacation closer to home rather than book a holiday overseas have delivered a boost to this years luxury camping businesses, who are feeling the benefits of a bumper summer. However, dig under the surface of the data and things start to get really exciting.

Reasons For The Increasing Trend

Tourists have had quite a difficult time over the past few years. First there was the melt down of the world’s financial markets, quickly followed by a large volcanic ash cloud that put holiday booking companies out of business and upset tourists out of pocket. Now there are terrorist threats, the refugee crisis, political turmoil and BREXIT, all leading to the perception of a hostile world and a very nervous holidaymaker.

Celebrities and Royalty have also given Glamping a boost with their endorsement of it in popular culture. This has resulted in a further boom in bookings with one campsite reporting an 11% increase in August from the same period the previous year.

What Holidaymakers Are SayingThe ‘Family Break Finder’ website undertook further research by questioning 1400 members and noted, “We’ve noticed a surge of interest in domestic holidays and short breaks.” They revealed that 50% wanted to stay in a UK campsite or holiday park next season, while nearly a third said they wanted to try Glamping.

Families are also expecting to see their holiday budgets shrink next year, but as Glamping is already considered to be a low cost holiday option amongst those questioned, this should strengthen the trend further.

The Future Looks Bright Even In The Face Of Danger

In 2013 academics also revealed just how strong glamping was in the face of worldwide challenge. The Journal of Outdoor Recreation and Tourism noted that Glamping was indeed an area in need of academic research and called for a study regarding “…outdoor hospitality, its successes and challenges, particularly in its stellar performance during the recent globalfinancial slowdown…”

More recently, IBIS Worldwide reported growth in the outdoor hospitality industry of 1% and revenue of 3 billion. They also noted that this surprisingly solid growth in the industry followed the economic slump, which bucked the trend of many other sectors.

Interest in the industry was demonstrated at the recent B2B Glamping Show, with businesses attending not just from the UK from around the globe, including Australia, Canada, USA, Israel, Slovenia, Italy, France, The Netherlands, Greece, Napal, Costa Rica and many more.

So what should new Glamping businesses be doing to take advantage of the strengthening trade in future years?

The Benefits Of An Outdoor Hospitality Business

The benefits of starting this type of business are various, but specifically it helps to diversify income generated from a piece of land.

With the right space, it can also be started using a variety of successful business models. In fact, one of the best kept secrets in this industry is that some of those models can achieve a return on investment and pay for their set up costs within the first two years of launching, which is quite a bold claim for any new business.

For entrepreneurs looking for a profitable business to start, this offers an exciting lifestyle opportunity, as they are able to spend more time outdoors with arguably more control over their future.

New businesses have right tools and knowledge available to them now, allowing them to learn quickly, build confidence, avoid pitfalls and jump ahead of the competition. Specifically, with winter ahead, now is the best time to start a project to be ready in time to launch for the new glamping season.

From my experience of helping new luxury camping businesses launch into this market, I have identified key areas that lead to success. However, the one thing thrilling glamping customers and keeping them coming back for more is how unique this market is. That’s the beauty of Glamping: it comes in many different forms, from tree houses to retired Boeing 767 aircraft.

This is all great news for vacationers, as their choice of luxurious, yet affordable, family holidays will continue to improve with the exhilarating options being offered. However, families are now shrewder than they’ve ever been about what makes a service great. Their expectations have grown and keeping pace with the market is making this a very exciting time for both the hospitality industry and customers alike.

As a founder member of B4RDS - we have been campaigning for faster broadband for the Blackdown Hills (and Devon & Somerset in general) for a number of years now.

It finally seems that someone is listening! GigaClear have announced that they are planning to invest in the area with a brand new ultra-fast fibre network. Once installed, this will will be capable of delivering 1000Mbs symmetrical broadband services (with telephone) to houses and businesses across the hills.

Once enough orders have been placed they will start the installation process "within 3 months"!

This is an entirely new proposal, to be privately funded (with city investment) and which will be competitively priced in comparison with BT's infinity 'superfast' broadband... However let's make no bones about it: the GigaClear offer is an entirely different animal to BT's failing & antiquated telephone system based 'fibre broadband' - which in reality (for the majority of their customers) is not fibre broadband at all!

Planning & Diversification AdvantagesWhile not all parishes in the hills will be able to take up the offer just yet - the opportunities that this exciting news presents are mind boggling. Most importantly to our clients, it finally means that there is a realistic prospect of converting unused / redundant buildings to viable - eminently letable - business accommodation. In principal, many previously isolated buildings with no former prospect of viable uses (owing to their lack of connectivity) now have a great chance to link into the fastest internet in the entire country.

The onset of UltraFast connectivity could well see a renaissance in the whole area - as businesses wishing to relocate out of towns and cities begin to realise that they can now operate data-heavy business from the idyllic surroundings of the Blackdowns...

Businesses that deal with large amounts of data, particularly the creative sector (games, video and graphics companies for example) will now be able to communicate efficiently and upload their work in seconds rather than hours (or in some cases in the hills; days).

To put the benefits of genuine fibre optic connections in context - a single strand of fibre has the bandwidth (carrying ability) to bear the entire worlds telephone conversations simultaneously... BT's copper-wire network is able to carry just one conversation (and a relatively small amount of data - if you're lucky!)

Future Proof​While the advantages of fibre in the Blackdowns may not be immediately apparent to landowners and householders, the key expression to consider is "future proof". Fibre has far more potential than even 1Gbs connection speeds - in principal it can provide 10Tbs of data bandwidth - meaning that a single fibre could easily support the most incomprehensible amount of data in the future... should it be needed.

Value addedStudies suggest that even super-fast connectivity (up to 70Mbs) adds ~3% to the value of a property. Ultra-fast connectivity will, without doubt, add significantly more to that re-valuation... Meaning that the £100 installation fee for a GigaClear connection will represent an return on investment in the order of >50:1 (for the average house in the Blackdowns)... As far as we can see this is a win win situation for everyone...

Action neededHowever, the opportunity requires action by residents:

If you are interested in the opportunities presented by the prospect of Ultra-Fast broadband, please visit:

Do nothing... you could sit back and wait for others to take action although this will not help the roll-out (not our recommended course of action!)

Take actionIf you are 'in' and wish to take up the opportunity - please seriously consider placing an order...

Remain positive - If you are out of the programme area please do register your interest (as the more interest GigaClear receive, the more likely they are to initiate services in your area in the near future).

If you'd like more information about the technical side of this opportunity, please contact GigaClear directly.

However if you're interested in how this situation might open up new opportunities for your business / property please feel free to drop us a line!

Early in 2016 I was given the opportunity to have a short 'in a nutshell' video made by BitPod (Exeter). Whilst I'm not exactly the next Kevin McLeod or George Clarke I hope you find use in the insights I gave!

The recording session was an interesting, if slightly nerve racking experience (can you tell?). That said, I would recommend the BitPod team - they did a great job in a relatively short period of time. I think if I'd been able to do a few more takes, the delivery could have been better - however I did what I could!

​Why do these barns stand empty,On this old family farm,And when did farming smaller holdings,Actually do the country harm,He was happy with his hundred ewes,Few horses, hens and sows,And never really saw the need,To milk more than thirty cows,Most of what they ate, he grew,As DEFRA looks to blame,He didnt need the plastic tags,He knew his stock by name,But he finds himself retiring,Because his joints are stiff with age,His sons moved to the city,Where they pay a proper wage,So hes in the hands of agents,And their joy is plain to see,Not a thought about his lifetimes work,Just a big fat sellers fee,They split the farm up into lots,Such is their endeavour,Without the sickening realisation,Another farm is lost forever,When the farmhouse sells at auction,Should he really mind?When its bought by the very people,Who have robbed his pension blind?Its sold with tiny paddocks,Because theyd like to keep a horse,But they love the look of foxes,So theyll never hunt, of course,They wont like crowing cockerels,Or the smell of muck being spread,The winter sound of gunfire,Or the thought of game shot dead,These barns have stood a century,Will soon be filled with glass and steel,Developers will leave some beams in,So it has that country feel,All the strangers move in slowly,And all the country skills are lost,Do we think just about the value?But ignore the long term cost,He sells the farm and wonders,What all his works been for,And how will these new folks manage,If there comes another war,When Sainsburys shelves are empty,Theres no wheat or livestock reared,They will look for farms and farmers,To find that both have disappeared

​Earlier this month the government relaxed planning rules concerned with converting agricultural buildings to residential dwellings. Under the new permitted development regulations, owners of farm buildings need no longer go through the lengthy process of applying for full planning permission and can instead, use the less arduous and significantly shorter process of attaining prior approval.

Summary of changes

The new permitted development changes will allow the change of use of an agricultural building to a dwelling house. It allows for the conversion of floor space up to 450 square metres per agricultural holding, creating up to 3 individual dwellings.

The changes apply to existing buildings being used for a sole agricultural use in connection with a trade or business as of 20th March 2013, or if the site is not in use on that date, when it was last in use. For any new agricultural buildings built or brought into an agricultural use after this date, the building must be in agricultural use for at least 10 years before these permitted changes can be applied.

It should be noted that the changes only apply in England and cannot be exercised in certain areas including National Parks, Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, Special Scientific Interest (SSSi) and Conservation Areas, a safety hazard area or a military explosives area. Nor do they apply to Listed Buildings, or if the site contains a Scheduled Monument.

The new permitted development rights also allow for material amendments necessary to convert the building to a residential property. These are identified as the installation or replacement of windows, doors, roofs or exterior walls, water, drainage, electricity, gas or other services, including any partial demolition needed to carry out the these works. However, any development would not be able to extend outside of the footprint of the external dimensions of the existing building.

Whilst developers will be able to use the curtilage of the building as garden, new dwellings built under these conditions will not benefit from normal residential permitted development rights, for example to extend or erect garages or sheds will still require full planning permission.

Applying under the new regulations

An application for prior approval must be submitted to the Council to give them an opportunity to officially determine whether to proposal is permitted and to consider the following issues:

· Transport and highways impacts - Noise impacts

· Contamination risks at the site - Flooding risks on the site

· Whether the location or siting of the building is practical and desirable for a dwelling

· Design and external appearance

The Council may also ask for further information that it deems necessary, including risk analysis and details of any intended work to be carried out. Upon receipt of a valid application, the Council have 56 days to make a decision; if a decision is not issued within this time then development can begin and if the Council refuse your prior notification application you will have a right of appeal.

It should be noted that once work has completed, any new agricultural storage buildings cannot be constructed under permitted development rights for a period of 10 years. Likewise, any new agricultural storage buildings erected under permitted development rights since 20th March 2013 or in the future, will not then be able to take advantage of the rights to change to residential uses for a period of 10 years.

Agricultural buildings that currently form part of an agricultural tenancy agreement (or have done in the past year) may be converted under the new rules but with the permission of both the landlord and the tenant.

Other permitted developments

The new provisions also allow for the conversion of agricultural buildings up to 500 square metres to a state-funded school or registered nursery, subject to conditions.

Similarly, provisions introduced last year allow agricultural buildings of up to 150 square metres to be converted into a range of commercial uses including shops, restaurants and cafés, offices, storage and distribution, hotels or assembly and leisure uses, again subject to conditions.

Seen a term in planning that you don't understand?To find out what your planning term means expand this blog page (click "read more"). Then press CTRL+F and type your query; your browser will jump to the relevant point (this works best with chrome - other browsers may vary).

Alternatively just browse the following terms (NOTE: this is practice is an excellent antidote to insomnia - we use it all the time!)Affordable housing: Social rented, affordable rented and intermediate housing, provided to eligible households whose needs are not met by the market. Eligibility is determined with regard to local incomes and local house prices. Affordable housing should include provisions to remain at an affordable price for future eligible households or for the subsidy to be recycled for alternative affordable housing provision.

Social rented housing is owned by local authorities and private registered providers (as defined in section 80 of the Housing and Regeneration Act 2008), for which guideline target rents are determined through the national rent regime. It may also be owned by other persons and provided under equivalent rental arrangements to the above, as agreed with the local authority or with the Homes and Communities Agency.

Affordable rented housing is let by local authorities or private registered providers of social housing to households who are eligible for social rented housing. Affordable Rent is subject to rent controls that require a rent of no more than 80% of the local market rent (including service charges, where applicable).

Intermediate housing is homes for sale and rent provided at a cost above social rent, but below market levels subject to the criteria in the Affordable Housing definition above. These can include shared equity (shared ownership and equity loans), other low cost homes for sale and intermediate rent, but not affordable rented housing.

Homes that do not meet the above definition of affordable housing, such as “low cost market” housing, may not be considered as affordable housing for planning purposes.

Aged or veteran tree: A tree which, because of its great age, size or condition is of exceptional value for wildlife, in the landscape, or culturally.

Air Quality Management Areas: Areas designated by local authorities because they are not likely to achieve national air quality objectives by the relevant deadlines.

Ancient woodland: An area that has been wooded continuously since at least 1600 AD.

Archaeological interest:There will be archaeological interest in a heritage asset if it holds, or potentially may hold, evidence of past human activity worthy of expert investigation at some point. Heritage assets with archaeological interest are the primary source of evidence about the substance and evolution of places, and of the people and cultures that made them.

Article 4 direction: A direction which withdraws automatic planning permission granted by the General Permitted Development Order. Best and most versatile agricultural land: Land in grades 1, 2 and 3a of the Agricultural Land Classification.

Birds and Habitats Directives: European Directives to conserve natural habitats and wild fauna and flora.

Climate change adaptation: Adjustments to natural or human systems in response to actual or expected climatic factors or their effects, including from changes in rainfall and rising temperatures, which moderate harm or exploit beneficial opportunities

Coastal Change Management Area: An area identified in Local Plans as likely to be affected by coastal change (physical change to the shoreline through erosion, coastal landslip, permanent inundation or coastal accretion).

Conservation (for heritage policy): The process of maintaining and managing change to a heritage asset in a way that sustains and, where appropriate, enhances its significance.

Community Forest: An area identified through the England Community Forest Programme to revitalise countryside and green space in and around major conurbations.

Community Infrastructure Levy: A levy allowing local authorities to raise funds from owners or developers of land undertaking new building projects in their area.

Community Right to Build Order: An Order made by the local planning authority (under the Town and Country Planning Act 1990) that grants planning permission for a site-specific development proposal or classes of development.

Competent person (to prepare site investigation information): A person with a recognised relevant qualification, sufficient experience in dealing with the type(s) of pollution or land instability, and membership of a relevant professional organisation.

Decentralised energy: Local renewable energy and local low-carbon energy usually but not always on a relatively small scale encompassing a diverse range of technologies.

Development plan: This includes adopted Local Plans, neighbourhood plans and the London Plan, and is defined in section 38 of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004. (Regional strategies remain part of the development plan until they are abolished by Order using powers taken in the Localism Act. It is the government’s clear policy intention to revoke the regional strategies outside of London, subject to the outcome of the environmental assessments that are currently being undertaken.)

Economic development: Development, including those within the B Use Classes, public and community uses and main town centre uses (but excluding housing development).

Ecological networks: These link sites of biodiversity importance.

Ecosystem services: The benefits people obtain from ecosystems such as, food, water, flood and disease control and recreation.

Edge of centre: For retail purposes, a location that is well connected and up to 300 metres of the primary shopping area. For all other main town centre uses, a location within 300 metres of a town centre boundary. For office development, this includes locations outside the town centre but within 500 metres of a public transport interchange. In determining whether a site falls within the definition of edge of centre, account should be taken of local circumstances.

Environmental Impact Assessment: A procedure to be followed for certain types of project to ensure that decisions are made in full knowledge of any likely significant effects on the environment.

European site: This includes candidate Special Areas of Conservation, Sites of Community Importance, Special Areas of Conservation and Special Protection Areas, and is defined in regulation 8 of the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2010.

Geodiversity: The range of rocks, minerals, fossils, soils and landforms.

Green infrastructure: A network of multi-functional green space, urban and rural, which is capable of delivering a wide range of environmental and quality of life benefits for local communities.

Heritage asset: A building, monument, site, place, area or landscape identified as having a degree of significance meriting consideration in planning decisions, because of its heritage interest. Heritage asset includes designated heritage assets and assets identified by the local planning authority (including local listing).

Heritage Coast: Areas of undeveloped coastline which are managed to conserve their natural beauty and, where appropriate, to improve accessibility for visitors.

Historic environment: All aspects of the environment resulting from the interaction between people and places through time, including all surviving physical remains of past human activity, whether visible, buried or submerged, and landscaped and planted or managed flora.

Historic environment record: Information services that seek to provide access to comprehensive and dynamic resources relating to the historic environment of a defined geographic area for public benefit and use.

Inclusive design: Designing the built environment, including buildings and their surrounding spaces, to ensure that they can be accessed and used by everyone.

Instrumentation operated in the national interest: Includes meteorological and climate monitoring installations, satellite and radio communication, defence and national security sites and magnetic calibration facilities operated by or on behalf of the Government, delegated authorities or for defence purposes.

International, national and locally designated sites of importance for biodiversity: All international sites (Special Areas of Conservation, Special Protection Areas, and Ramsar sites), national sites (Sites of Special Scientific Interest) and locally designated sites including Local Wildlife Sites.

Local Development Order: An Order made by a local planning authority (under the Town and Country Planning Act 1990) that grants planning permission for a specific development proposal or classes of development.

Local Enterprise Partnership: A body, designated by the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, established for the purpose of creating or improving the conditions for economic growth in an area.

Local Nature Partnership: A body, designated by the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, established for the purpose of protecting and improving the natural environment in an area and the benefits derived from it.

Local planning authority: The public authority whose duty it is to carry out specific planning functions for a particular area. All references to local planning authority apply to the district council, London borough council, county council, Broads Authority, National Park Authority and the Greater London Authority, to the extent appropriate to their responsibilities.

Local Plan: The plan for the future development of the local area, drawn up by the local planning authority in consultation with the community. In law this is described as the development plan documents adopted under the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004. Current core strategies or other planning policies, which under the regulations would be considered to be development plan documents, form part of the Local Plan. The term includes old policies which have been saved under the 2004 Act.

Major Hazards: Major hazard installations and pipelines, licensed explosive sites and nuclear installations, around which Health and Safety Executive (and Office for Nuclear Regulation) consultation distances to mitigate the consequences to public safety of major accidents may apply.Minerals of local and national importance: Minerals which are necessary to meet society’s needs, including aggregates, brickclay (especially Etruria Marl and fireclay), silica sand (including high grade silica sands), cement raw materials, gypsum, salt, fluorspar, shallow and deep-mined coal, oil and gas (including hydrocarbons), tungsten, kaolin, ball clay, potash and local minerals of importance to heritage assets and local distinctiveness.

Mineral Safeguarding Area: An area designated by Minerals Planning Authorities which covers known deposits of minerals which are desired to be kept safeguarded from unnecessary sterilisation by non-mineral development.

National Trails: Long distance routes for walking, cycling and horse riding.

Nature Improvement Areas: Inter-connected networks of wildlife habitats intended to re-establish thriving wildlife populations and help species respond to the challenges of climate change.

Neighbourhood Development Order: An Order made by a local planning authority (under the Town and Country Planning Act 1990) through which Parish Councils and neighbourhood forums can grant planning permission for a specific development proposal or classes of development. Neighbourhood plans: A plan prepared by a Parish Council or Neighbourhood Forum for a particular neighbourhood area (made under the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004).

Older people: People over retirement age, including the active, newly-retired through to the very frail elderly, whose housing needs can encompass accessible, adaptable general needs housing for those looking to downsize from family housing and the full range of retirement and specialised housing for those with support or care needs.Open space: All open space of public value, including not just land, but also areas of water (such as rivers, canals, lakes and reservoirs) which offer important opportunities for sport and recreation and can act as a visual amenity.

Original building: A building as it existed on 1 July 1948 or, if constructed after 1 July 1948, as it was built originally.

Out of centre: A location which is not in or on the edge of a centre but not necessarily outside the urban area.

Out of town: A location out of centre that is outside the existing urban area.

People with disabilities: People have a disability if they have a physical or mental impairment, and that impairment has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on their ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities. These persons include, but are not limited to, people with ambulatory difficulties, blindness, learning difficulties, autism and mental health needs.

Planning condition: A condition imposed on a grant of planning permission (in accordance with the Town and Country Planning Act 1990) or a condition included in a Local Development Order or Neighbourhood Development Order.

Planning obligation: A legally enforceable obligation entered into under section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 to mitigate the impacts of a development proposal.

Playing field: The whole of a site which encompasses at least one playing pitch as defined in the Town and Country Planning (Development Management Procedure) (England) Order 2010.

Pollution: Anything that affects the quality of land, air, water or soils, which might lead to an adverse impact on human health, the natural environment or general amenity. Pollution can arise from a range of emissions, including smoke, fumes, gases, dust, steam, odour, noise and light.

Previously developed land: Land which is or was occupied by a permanent structure, including the curtilage of the developed land (although it should not be assumed that the whole of the curtilage should be developed) and any associated fixed surface infrastructure. This excludes: land that is or has been occupied by agricultural or forestry buildings; land that has been developed for minerals extraction or waste disposal by landfill purposes where provision for restoration has been made through development control procedures; land in built-up areas such as private residential gardens, parks, recreation grounds and allotments; and land that was previously-developed but where the remains of the permanent structure or fixed surface structure have blended into the landscape in the process of time.

Primary shopping area: Defined area where retail development is concentrated (generally comprising the primary and those secondary frontages which are adjoining and closely related to the primary shopping frontage).

Primary and secondary frontages: Primary frontages are likely to include a high proportion of retail uses which may include food, drinks, clothing and household goods. Secondary frontages provide greater opportunities for a diversity of uses such as restaurants, cinemas and businesses. Priority habitats and species: Species and Habitats of Principle Importance included in the England Biodiversity List published by the Secretary of State under section 41 of the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006.

Ramsar sites: Wetlands of international importance, designated under the 1971 Ramsar Convention.

Renewable and low carbon energy: Includes energy for heating and cooling as well as generating electricity. Renewable energy covers those energy flows that occur naturally and repeatedly in the environment – from the wind, the fall of water, the movement of the oceans, from the sun and also from biomass and deep geothermal heat. Low carbon technologies are those that can help reduce emissions (compared to conventional use of fossil fuels).

Rural exception sites: Small sites used for affordable housing in perpetuity where sites would not normally be used for housing. Rural exception sites seek to address the needs of the local community by accommodating households who are either current residents or have an existing family or employment connection. Small numbers of market homes may be allowed at the local authority’s discretion, for example where essential to enable the delivery of affordable units without grant funding.

Safeguarding zone: An area defined in Circular 01/03: Safeguarding aerodromes, technical sites and military explosives storage areas, to safeguard such sites.

Setting of a heritage asset: The surroundings in which a heritage asset is experienced. Its extent is not fixed and may change as the asset and its surroundings evolve. Elements of a setting may make a positive or negative contribution to the significance of an asset, may affect the ability to appreciate that significance or may be neutral.

Shoreline Management Plans: A plan providing a large-scale assessment of the risk to people and to the developed, historic and natural environment associated with coastal processes.

Significance (for heritage policy):The value of a heritage asset to this and future generations because of its heritage interest. That interest may be archaeological, architectural, artistic or historic. Significance derives not only from a heritage asset’s physical presence, but also from its setting.Special Areas of Conservation: Areas given special protection under the European Union’s Habitats Directive, which is transposed into UK law by the Habitats and Conservation of Species Regulations 2010.

Special Protection Areas: Areas which have been identified as being of international importance for the breeding, feeding, wintering or the migration of rare and vulnerable species of birds found within European Union countries. They are European designated sites, classified under the Birds Directive. Site investigation information:Includes a risk assessment of land potentially affected by contamination, or ground stability and slope stability reports, as appropriate. All investigations of land potentially affected by contamination should be carried out in accordance with established procedures (such as BS10175 (2001) Code of Practice for the Investigation of Potentially Contaminated Sites). The minimum information that should be provided by an applicant is the report of a desk study and site reconnaissance.

Site of Special Scientific Interest: Sites designated by Natural England under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981.

Stepping stones: Pockets of habitat that, while not necessarily connected, facilitate the movement of species across otherwise inhospitable landscapes.

Strategic Environmental Assessment: A procedure (set out in the Environmental Assessment of Plans and Programmes Regulations 2004) which requires the formal environmental assessment of certain plans and programmes which are likely to have significant effects on the environment.

Supplementary planning documents:Documents which add further detail to the policies in the Local Plan. They can be used to provide further guidance for development on specific sites, or on particular issues, such as design. Supplementary planning documents are capable of being a material consideration in planning decisions but are not part of the development plan.

Sustainable transport modes: Any efficient, safe and accessible means of transport with overall low impact on the environment, including walking and cycling, low and ultra low emission vehicles, car sharing and public transport.

Town centre:Area defined on the local authority’s proposal map, including the primary shopping area and areas predominantly occupied by main town centre uses within or adjacent to the primary shopping area. References to town centres or centres apply to city centres, town centres, district centres and local centres but exclude small parades of shops of purely neighbourhood significance. Unless they are identified as centres in Local Plans, existing out-of-centre developments, comprising or including main town centre uses, do not constitute town centres.

Transport assessment: A comprehensive and systematic process that sets out transport issues relating to a proposed development. It identifies what measures will be required to improve accessibility and safety for all modes of travel, particularly for alternatives to the car such as walking, cycling and public transport and what measures will need to be taken to deal with the anticipated transport impacts of the development.

Transport statement: A simplified version of a transport assessment where it is agreed the transport issues arising out of development proposals are limited and a full transport assessment is not required.

Travel plan: A long-term management strategy for an organisation or site that seeks to deliver sustainable transport objectives through action and is articulated in a document that is regularly reviewed.

Wildlife corridor: Areas of habitat connecting wildlife populations.

Windfall sites: Sites which have not been specifically identified as available in the Local Plan process. They normally comprise previously-developed sites that have unexpectedly become available. ​

A land owner from Doncaster has been awarded fines and costs totalling more than a quarter of a million pounds for “flagrant” breaches of planning law and now faces a spell in prison if he doesn't pay. This follows a prosecution brought by the local planning authority.

It is the biggest planning fine in Doncaster within living memory, and one of the biggest ever in the UK.

Nigel Smith, aged 57, of Manor Farm, on Moss Road, Moss, was convicted after pleading guilty to breaching an enforcement notice issued by the Doncaster Council on five occasions during 2011 and 2012.

In 2009 Smith laid hardcore at the farm to form a compound and brought in a residential caravan, later adding portable offices for businesses linked to the site and installing a number of shipping storage containers.

Smith did not have planning permission for any of these activities so the planning authority served an enforcement notice requiring that he cease the activities. He appealed the notice but it was upheld in the council's favour.

When Smith failed to comply with the notice, Doncaster Council took him to court in November 2011 for failing to comply with the notice on two occasions. Smith was fined £2,000. Despite being fined, Smith carried on his operations at Manor Farm in contravention of the enforcement notice.

The council took further legal action which resulted in Smith being sentenced at Sheffield Crown Court. He was convicted of breaching the enforcement notice on five occasions.

The judge, Mr. Recorder Hubbard QC, fined him a quarter of a million pounds with the proviso of a prison sentence of two years if the sum is not paid within 30 days. Smith was also ordered to pay Doncaster Council's costs of £13,575.35 in full.

The judge said it was "difficult to imagine such a flagrant breach in defiance of the enforcement notices”.

The Mayor of Doncaster, Peter Davies, said: "I am pleased with this result. It sends a clear message that Doncaster Council will not tolerate people using land for unlawful and inappropriate purposes. We will always seek to prosecute in these cases."

A new policy from East Devon District Council will be music to the ears of many larger farming families in the East Devon District!

A new planning policy has been put forward that will allow all farms of 100 acres or more to build a second agricultural dwelling! Under the new "Agricultural Development and Succession Housing" policy there will be a presumption in favour of a second agricultural dwelling on the holding for occupation by a family member employed in agriculture on the property subject to the following conditions:

1. Any new agricultural dwelling shall be located within or adjoining the farm building complex.

2. Only in the event of there being no existing building suitable for conversion, will a new building be permitted which shall be designed to match the local vernacular design and be built using local materials and meeting policy for sustainable construction and on site renewable energy production.

3. The occupation of the new dwelling and any existing dwelling on the farm (not already tied) shall be the subject of an agricultural tying condition.

4. Evidence is provided to the Local Planning Authority of a farming business being undertaken on the holding and there being an identified need [this is a lesser test than the financial and functional tests].

5. The new dwelling meeting lifetime home standards. Further agricultural dwellings will require financial and functional needs tests to be met.

If you have any questions about this exciting prospect or would like to take East Devon Up on this extremely generous shift in policy - please do not hesitate to contact us.

We always recommend seeking independent advice from a Planning Professional (like us) before approaching your local council in relation to any planning matters. An independent adviser will always look at your individual case with your interests at heart - and not those of the council... You'd be amazed how big a can of worms that can be opened by an innocent remark or observation in the presence of a council planning officer!

​It seems that every time you go to a party or switch channels on television, all you hear are horror stories about cowboy builders, runaway budgets and mind boggling overruns.

So what on earth can YOU do to avoid your project turning into a reality-TV-style house of horrors?

Well, the first and most obvious tactic would be to ask your architect or project manager to do the job for you. Inevitably this will come with a cost requirement, but it's a cost one that should be recovered as many as 10x over during the following stages of the building process. Our own policy is that we always quote for this element of professional input from the outset; we firmly believe in our mantra that "Honesty makes the best property" - and it's only fair that our design clients are offered the full works, hands held service, from the outset.

If you do decide to take the plunge and go it alone, the bad news is that you really should identify not one, but three good quality firms, so you can ask them all to provide a competitive tender. While it might seem that finding 5, 6, 7, 8 or more firms to tender is a good idea, we would advise against this, frankly if any self respecting firm thinks they're in that level of competition for a 'small job' (let's be realistic here) they'll more than likely run a mile. The next point is you're looking for a quality, reliable, service and someone that will do the job to a suitable standard for a sensible price - not necessarily the cheapest price. (In fact the cheapest price quoted rarely produces the lowest project cost in the long run)

The good news is that it’s not as difficult to find quality builders as you may think - you just need to follow a few simple but logical steps...

A recommendation from friends, family or colleagues is almost always the ideal starting point, however if you don’t know anyone in your network that has had work done - don’t give up! Why not open the field a little wider by sending an email to your (local) contacts, let them know exactly what you are looking for. You could also try twitter or other social sites like facebook and linked-in.

If that fails to discover at least a raft of recommendations for 'a good builder', you can always turn to local estate-agents, surveyors, or trade organisations such as the Federation of Master Builders who host a find a builder service.

The advantage with utilising FMB or others like the National Federation of Builders is that their members have (at least in theory) been vetted and should undertake their work in line with their body's standards. If anything does go wrong, both have mediation services for peace of mind.

It’s not just about choosing any old ‘good builder’You will also need to choose the team that's right for your job. Contrary to popular belief, size IS important - there's no sense in employing a 2 man band to build a 5 bed palatial villa, and likewise a national firm is almost certainly not going to be interested in a single storey extension to a bungalow.

It is best that the team you select have the most relevant experience possible - every firm is as good as their last job! So, if you are planning work on a listed building, find a company that has experience in conservation work rather than a contractor who specialises in new build work.

Whichever method use to source your builder, you should put them through vetting process of your own and, no matter what; you should always feel comfortable with them. You may need to work together for several months and through pretty challenging circumstances to boot.

In a self administered building project YOU are the client, it's your job to control it and, ultimately, YOU have control of the builder. If you’re not confident in managing a potentially complex job; please take our advice and hire support from an experienced project manager IMMEDIATELY. No matter which firm you choose, the builder will need clear and firm direction - the success and satisfactory completion of your job depends on this fact alone. It is a common misconception by first time 'property developers' that builders will solve problems of their own accord... this is frequently not the case. As master of the project you must be able to make the many tough and potentially expensive decisions that lie ahead - and with confidence to keep the build on track...

Good references from their most recent clients are absolutely essential; don’t just take them at face value. If you think you've found your firm - make arrangements to visit a couple of their recent sites and, ideally, speak to at-least one recent client; Ask them about the quality of the work, what the contractor did and their working methods. Check the reliability of the builder and whether there were any issues with the project.

Don’t be shy or embarrassed about it either! If you are planning to invest several tens of thousands in a project you need to be sure that the firm will do what they say, and well. Imagine what you would do if things went wrong because you hadn't asked...

On the subject of things going wrong, in our opinion any builder doing anything involving structural work or even non-structural work for that matter must be fully insured - ask to see up to date copies of their insurance policies. Be very wary of any claims, professional qualifications, logos or memberships on business cards and letterheads; these can easily be faked. Don’t be shy to check them with the relevant organisations to make sure they are genuine.

Having drawn up a shortlist of potential contractors, the next phase in the process is to ask them to produce a detailed quote and a detailed time-scale for the stages of the job. To make this as accurate as possible, make certain that the description you provide is as detailed as possible - again your architect or design technician will help if needs be. If you have full building regulations approval, the submitted documents will be a helpful document to supply to your builder (If you don’t; you may need to stop looking for a builder and take additional advice from your designer – there could be professional work to be done yet!)

There is a big difference between asking for a quote and an estimate: An estimate, unlike a quote, is merely a rough guide or a guess taking into account the known site factors but allowing room for manoeuvre in the final price for the unknown too.

Mostly you should be very wary of open ended estimates in relation to any building works.

A quote is a costed price for the job - the figure(s) quoted is what you will pay for the job. Occasionally there may be 'Provisional Sums' quoted - these are where unknown item costs may be involved but an estimate for each item is allocated (typically these are for items that cannot be fully established until work has started for example, or for items that are yet to be decided; kitchen type, floor tiles, bathroom suite etc etc.

When asking for prices - it is important that all of your candidate builders are given the same level of information - it is easy to get into conversation with one builder and forget that he has received far more detail than the others. Ultimately you need to be sure that all of your shortlist are providing a quote on a like for like basis for fair comparison.

When you have your prices (don’t be surprised if this takes some time) don’t just chose the contractor on the basis of the lowest price; you will probably be spending a lot of money and you will have to live with the result for many years. Nor should you choose on the basis of the builders own availability; a good building firm is normally busy (even in recession) and so they may not be able to start work right away.

Once you have decided on the builder for your job, make sure that you tie down all the loose ends and create a formal contract with both a start and completion date. You can try to add in an overrun penalty clause, but be generous with its timings and realistic with the penalties. If you don’t know how to set up a contract, you can download a number of standard documents for free from the Federation of Master Builders’ website http://www.fmb.org.uk/find-a-builder/free-contracts/.

Alternatively you should speak to a Professional Property Consultant or Architectural Practice (like Keith Farmer Associates); either of whom will provide professional advice and add an additional layer of security for the hard earned money that you are about to sign away.

Within contracts of engagement you should also agree payment stages and how those stages are to be determined and signed off (if a bank is lending money for the project based on complete stages their input will be required at this stage also).

There are almost always unexpected extras involved in building projects, so you should also allow for the actual budget to swell by around 20%. Never pay too much money in advance and always be wary of a VAT free deal. No VAT registration means that there will be little or no paperwork to fall back on if it all goes wrong and dodgy accounting might well be reflected in the general management of work.

Finally, set up regular meetings to check on progress throughout the work and if you are not happy about anything at all, just ask plenty of questions before you sign!

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Bondstones (Chartered Surveyors) is a Town & Country Planning and Architectural Design practice - working throughout the Southern counties of England.

We are extremely proud to be 'Regulated by the RICS' - this means we are a professionally qualified and regulated practice - bound by a code of conduct, strict rules and regulations. This means that we will only undertake work which is directly within our field(s) of expertise and that we are also fully insured (both Professional Indemnity and Public / Employers Liability).

​We are passionate about architecture and the countryside, its' sustainable future and the protection / re-use of rural buildings: as such we offer our professional expertise to satisfy a range of rural property issues, including (but not limited to): Town & Country Planning (Planning Consultancy) and Architectural Design / Building Design (Architecture). Our primary interest being sustainable projects for the 'change of use' of buildings & land.

We aim to operate a tight ship with low overheads and zero debt (we run an almost entirely paperless office) working with the latest computer software to provide the best possible service to our clients. Our 3D building design capability enables fast visualisation of our work and a seamless continuity between all levels of our design output.

Despite our cutting edge offer and market leading output quality, our services are available to all of our customers at surprisingly low rates (compared to our competitors). OK, its fair to say you will always find someone cheaper... but isn't that always the way! You won't find us on the high street (ever) and we'll always meet our clients at their own premises (for their convenience) - in other words we work for our customers - not for our accountants!

We generally undertake work for:

Farmers & Farm Businesses

Rural Estates / Estate Managers

Equestrian Properties & Businesses

Home / Property Owners*

Tourism Entrepreneurs

Countryside Attractions & Recreation Sites

* Please note that 'small' extensions are not really our cup of tea... However if necessary we would be happy to refer you to a suitable 3rd party specialist.